Fabrication of the 23-ft Collimating Mirror for the JPL 25-ft Space Simulator

Optical, structural, and thermal design criteria and fabrication techniques for collimating mirror in space simulato

A solar-wind-driven empirical model of Pc3 wave activity at a mid-latitude location

In this paper we describe the development of two empirical models of Pc3 wave activity observed at a ground station. The models are tasked to predict pulsation intensity at Tihany, Hungary, from the OMNI solar wind data set at 5 min time resolution. One model is based on artificial neural networks and the other on multiple linear regression. Input parameters to the models are iteratively selected from a larger set of candidate inputs. The optimal set of inputs are solar wind speed, interplanetary magnetic field orientation (via cone angle), proton density and solar zenith angle (representing local time). Solar wind measurements are shifted in time with respect to Pc3 data to account for the propagation time of ULF perturbations from upstream of the bow shock. Both models achieve correlation of about 70 % between measured and predicted Pc3 wave intensity. The timescales at which the most important solar wind parameters influence pulsation intensity are calculated for the first time. We show that solar wind speed influences pulsation intensity at much longer timescales (about 2 days) than cone angle (about 1 h)

Glutamatergic transmission in the central nucleus of the amygdala is selectively altered in Marchigian Sardinian alcohol-preferring rats: Alcohol and CRF effects

The CRF system of the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) is important for the processing of anxiety, stress, and effects of acute and chronic ethanol. We previously reported that ethanol decreases evoked glutamate transmission in the CeA of Sprague Dawley rats and that ethanol dependence alters glutamate release in the CeA. Here, we examined the effects of ethanol, CRF and a CRF1 receptor antagonist on spontaneous and evoked glutamatergic transmission in CeA neurons from Wistar and Marchigian Sardinian Preferring (msP) rats, a rodent line genetically selected for excessive alcohol drinking and characterized by heightened activity of the CRF1 system. Basal spontaneous and evoked glutamate transmission in CeA neurons from msP rats was increased compared to Wistar rats. Ethanol had divergent effects, either increasing or decreasing spontaneous glutamate release in the CeA of Wistar rats. This bidirectional effect was retained in msP rats, but the magnitude of the ethanol-induced increase in glutamate release was significantly smaller. The inhibitory effect of ethanol on evoked glutamatergic transmission was similar in both strains. CRF also either increased or decreased spontaneous glutamate release in CeA neurons of Wistar rats, however, in msP rats CRF only increased glutamate release. The inhibitory effect of CRF on evoked glutamatergic transmission was also lost in neurons from msP rats. A CRF1 antagonist produced only minor effects on spontaneous glutamate transmission, which were consistent across strains, and no effects on evoked glutamate transmission. These results demonstrate that the genetically altered CRF system of msP rats results in alterations in spontaneous and stimulated glutamate signaling in the CeA that may contribute to both the anxiety and drinking behavioral phenotypes

User quality of experience of mulsemedia applications

User Quality of Experience (QoE) is of fundamental importance in multimedia applications and has been extensively studied for decades. However, user QoE in the context of the emerging multiple-sensorial media (mulsemedia) services, which involve different media components than the traditional multimedia applications, have not been comprehensively studied. This article presents the results of subjective tests which have investigated user perception of mulsemedia content. In particular, the impact of intensity of certain mulsemedia components including haptic and airflow on user-perceived experience are studied. Results demonstrate that by making use of mulsemedia the overall user enjoyment levels increased by up to 77%

Measurements of sub-nT dynamic magnetic field shielding with soft iron and mu-metal for use in linear colliders

There is an increasing need to shield beams and accelerator elements from stray magnetic fields. The application of magnetic shielding in linear colliders is discussed. The shielding performance of soft iron and mu-metal is measured for magnetic fields of varying amplitude and frequency. Special attention is given to characterise the shielding performance for very small-amplitude magnetic fields

Measurements and modelling of stray magnetic fields and the simulation of their impact on the Compact Linear Collider at 380 GeV

The Compact Linear Collider (CLIC) targets a nanometre beam size at the collision point. Realising this beam size requires the generation and transport of ultra-low emittance beams. Dynamic imperfections can deflect the colliding beams, leading to a collision with a relative offset. They can also degrade the emittance of each beam. Both of these effects can significantly impact the luminosity of CLIC. In this paper, we examine a newly considered dynamic imperfection: stray magnetic fields. Measurements of stray magnetic fields in the Large Hadron Collider tunnel are presented and used to develop a statistical model that can be used to realistically generate stray magnetic fields in simulations. The model is used in integrated simulations of CLIC at 380GeV including mitigation systems for stray magnetic fields to evaluate their impact on luminosity

Near-equatorial Pi2 and Pc3 waves observed by CHAMP and on SAMBA/MAGDAS stations

We have examined simultaneous ULF activity in the Pi2 and Pc3 bands at the near-equatorial magnetic stations in South America from SAMBA and MAGDAS arrays and low-orbiting CHAMP satellite during its passage over this meridional network. At the nighttime, both Pi2 and Pc3 waves in the upper ionosphere and on the ground are nearly of the same magnitude and in-phase. At the same time, the daytime Pc3 pulsations on the ground and in space are nearly out-of-phase. Comparison of observational results with the theoretical notions on the MHD wave interaction with the system ionosphere–atmosphere–ground suggests that nighttime low-latitude Pi2 and Pc3 wave signatures are produced by magnetospheric fast compressional mode. The daytime near-equatorial Pc3 waves still resist a quantative interpretation. These waves may be produced by a combination of two mechanisms: compressional mode leakage through the ionosphere, and by oscillatory ionospheric current spreading towards equatorial latitudes

Empirically modelled Pc3 activity based on solar wind parameters

It is known that under certain solar wind (SW)/interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions (e.g. high SW speed, low cone angle) the occurrence of ground-level Pc3–4 pulsations is more likely. In this paper we demonstrate that in the event of anomalously low SW particle density, Pc3 activity is extremely low regardless of otherwise favourable SW speed and cone angle. We re-investigate the SW control of Pc3 pulsation activity through a statistical analysis and two empirical models with emphasis on the influence of SW density on Pc3 activity. We utilise SW and IMF measurements from the OMNI project and ground-based magnetometer measurements from the MM100 array to relate SW and IMF measurements to the occurrence of Pc3 activity. Multiple linear regression and artificial neural network models are used in iterative processes in order to identify sets of SW-based input parameters, which optimally reproduce a set of Pc3 activity data. The inclusion of SW density in the parameter set significantly improves the models. Not only the density itself, but other density related parameters, such as the dynamic pressure of the SW, or the standoff distance of the magnetopause work equally well in the model. The disappearance of Pc3s during low-density events can have at least four reasons according to the existing upstream wave theory: 1. Pausing the ion-cyclotron resonance that generates the upstream ultra low frequency waves in the absence of protons, 2. Weakening of the bow shock that implies less efficient reflection, 3. The SW becomes sub-Alfvénic and hence it is not able to sweep back the waves propagating upstream with the Alfvén-speed, and 4. The increase of the standoff distance of the magnetopause (and of the bow shock). Although the models cannot account for the lack of Pc3s during intervals when the SW density is extremely low, the resulting sets of optimal model inputs support the generation of mid latitude Pc3 activity predominantly through upstream waves